Decombining device for combination locks employed for safes



June 26, 1928.

- H. IBARRART DECOMBINING DEVICE FOR COMBINATION LOCKS EMPLOYED FOR SAFES Filed May 15, 1926 Patented June 26, 1928.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRI IBARRART, OF PARIS, FRANCE.

Application filed May 18, 1926, Serial No. 108,846, and in France May 19, 1925.

My invention relates to combination locks which are chiefly employed for the closing of safes, and it has for its object to allow the said locks to be opened without knowing the combination which was employed for the closing. For this purpose I provide a decombining device in combination with any of the usual combination locks employed for safes, whereby the parts of the combination mechanism may be placed in the proper position for opening the lock, without utilizing the combination.

My said decombining device, in combination with any of the usual combination 1 looks employed for safes, possesses various advantages whereof one consists in the fact that the owner of the safe may open it without damage to the same and without excessive strains upon the lock when the combination is not known, or when after closing the safe he has forgotten the combination, or in the case in which a person to whom he has given the use of the safe by rental or otherwise has forgotten the combination which he employed, or has left the safe closed by means of a combination unknown to him.

By the use of the aforesaid lock device I am chiefly enabled to utilize safes in the 3 rooms of hotels, which could not be done hitherto, since the guests would frequentl forget the combination which they employe or would leave the hotel with the safe closed and without notifying the proprietor of the combination. In either case, this would prove a frequent source of trouble, and the locksmiths aid must be often called upon.

In my said invention, any of the known combination locks for safes, when used in connection with a de-combining device, may thus be opened without knowing the combination. For this purpose the lock comprises the usual combination mechanism whose parts-and chiefly the slots of the gear wheels for the combinationsmust be brought into certain positions for opening the lock, and it further comprises in combination the de-combining device which is controlled by a special key in the sole posses sion of the proprietor, the keyhole for the said key being closed by a seal or by like means affording all security to the user against improper interference.

For the better comprehension of my said invention, and by way of example, a form of 5 construction of the de-combining device in combination with a known combination lock employed for safes, is set forth in the following description with reference to the appended drawings.

Fig. l is a plan view of a combination lock provided with the said de-combining device, with the top or front plate of the lock removed. Fig. 2 is a detail view of the member actuated by the key Of the decombining mechanism, the said member being turned about to a reverse position to that in which it is shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a plan view of one of the slotted pinions or combination wheels of a known type but 7 which has been suitably modified for use with the de-combining device, and Fig. 4 is the corresponding side view. Fig. 5 is a plan view of the keyhole of the ordinary lock and of the keyhole part for the dell combining device. Fig. 6 is an elevational view of the cap for the keyhole part of the de-combining device, and Fig. 7 is a section of the same showing also the cap-locking means. Fig. 8 is an enlarged detail View of the cap-locking pin.

Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4 show a combination lock, known per se, whereof the straight locking bolts 1 and 1 and the bevelled locking bolt 1 can only be brought to the rear for opening the look by means of a key inserted at 2, when the usual pinions 3 slotted at 4 have been displaced by the milled knobs 5 pertaining to the combination mechanism, so as to bring the slots 4 into coincidence with the studs 6 mounted on the plate 7 which is secured to the straight locking bolts. Combined with the aforesaid lock arrangement is a tie-combining device which as herein shown consists of a right angled plate whereof one branch 8 which is situated over the wheels 3 and carries studs 9 (Fig. 2), corresponding in number to the combination wheels and to the studs 6 of the plate 7, each stud 9 being situated upon the line connecting the corresponding stud 6 with the axis of the pinion of the combinations 3, and the slot 4 of the pinion 3 should be situated upon this line in order that the lock may be opened; the other branch 8 of the right-angled plate comprises a notch at one side of which is a shoulder 10 to co-act with an additional key or de-combining key, which is inserted at 11, the motion of the plate 8' being limited in a known manner by a tenon engaging in a guide slot 12; the branch 8 of the right-angled plate is held against the pinions 3 by the lugs 13 and 13 which are mounted upon the plate 14 of the casing of said pinions.

Upon the branch 8 of the said rightangled plate may be mounted a set of pivoted metallic plates 15, which are caused to oscillate by the bit ot the key of the de-combining device and, when properly adjusted, the slots 16 of the pivoted plates will coincide or register with a stud 17 which is mounted tor the purpose on the plate 8; the upper pivoted plate carries a pin or abutment 18 which will be further mentioned.

As concerns the pinions 3 (Figs. 3 and 4) these comprise an upper disc 19 having approximately, in lan, the form of a spiral commencing at tie inner end of the slot 4 and ending at a certain distance from this inner end on the other edge of the notch, thus forming an abutment 20 above this latter edge.

The key-hole 11. in which a special or decombining key is to be inserted. is preferably formed in a boss 21 on the front plate 21. and fitting over said boss in a cap 21 the top 24 of which has a key-hole opening 26 registering with the key-hole 11. Between the top 01 said boss and the top 2-]: of said cap a water or seal 25 of paper or the like is preferably located, and the opening 26 may be closed by wax or the like which will be prevented from entering the keyhole 1.1 by the seal The pivoted tumbler plate 15 is preferably provided with a pin 18 having a lateral projection or lug a. which registers with a notch in the cap 22 and serves to lock the said cap on the boss 21 until the tumbler plate 15 is operated, by a key inserted in the key-hole 11, to remove the locking lug a from the notch 23, thus permitting the cap 22 to be removed from the boss 21.. This feature of the cap 22 and its locking and releasing means is not vital to the present invention, as the key-hole 11 may be sealed in any suitable manner when it is desired to detect an unauthorized or surreptitious use of the de-combining key.

The said tie-combining device is operated as follows:

After the lock has been closed by the use of a certain combination, it can be again opened in the normal manner by a person knowing the combination. But it the person does not know the combination, he inserts into the key hole 11, after breaking or removing the seal 25 or like means closing the said key-hole 11, the key for the de-combining device; the plate 01' plates 15 can be actuated by the cut-out parts of the key bit; and the slot or slots 16 of the said plate or plates 15 are brought into register with the stud 17, so that the right-angled piece 8, 8' can move when the key, in its sweep, contacts with the shoulder 10, and the studs 9 of the branch 8 move forward with the said piece. While still maintaining the decombining key in position, the first knob 5 is turned; when the slot 4 of the pinion 3 (controlled by said knob) comes below the corresponding stud 9, and the person eontinues to turn the knob, the stud ,9 will make contact with the shoulder or abutment 20, thus holding the pinion in the fixed position. The other combination knobs are then successively turned; at this time all of the studs 9 are in contact with their shoulders or abutments 20, i. e. they are brought into register with the slots 4:; since the studs 9 are in line with. the studs 6, the latter studs will thus coincide or re ister with the slots 4 of the pinions 3. In tiis manner, the pinions are brought into the position for opening the lock, and the latter is then opened by the ordinary key which acts upon the mechanism.

In the case above mentioned in which the said locks are to be employed for safes in the rooms of hotels, the proprietor possesses in addition to a duplicate of all the ordinary keys. a. tie-combining ke which may be common to all the safes m the est-ablishment, and he is thus enabled to open the safe for \vhich the user has forgotten the combination which he employed, or a safe which the user has left closed upon quitting the hotel.

WVhen the user takes possession of the safe, he may place upon the upper or outer recessed part 24 of the cap 22 a wafer consisting of a piece of paper, a metallic disc or the like and a wax seal, thus closing the key-hole 11, said seal being broken when the de-comloining key is to be used; after employing the ke a new seal is put on, the use of the said key having permitted the removal of the cap 22, so that the user may again use a piece of paper, a metallic disc or the like to prevent the wax from flowing into the key-hole 11.

What I claim is:

1. The combination with a safe combination lock, of a de-cornbining device comprising means for releasing the bolts of the look with a key which is independent of the combination, and means for sealing the keyhole for the tic-combining key, so that surreptitious unlocking of the lock with a decombining key may be detected, said sealingmeans comprising a boss surrounding said key-hole, a wafer to cover said keyhole, a cap to hold said wafer on said boss, and releasable locking means for said cap.

2. The combination with a safe combination lock having slotted pinions, of a decombining mechanism comprisin a movable right-angled plate one arm 0 which is provided with studs corresponding in numher to the number of said slotted pinions and the other arm of which is notched to 10 provide a shoulder to be engaged by the bit of a de-combining key to force said studs into the slots of said pinions when the lock is to be unlocked by the decombining key.

In testimony whereof I affix my signa- 15 ture.

HENRI IBARRART. 

